


Astra

by ThePlaceThatILeft (Rei_Kingdom)



Series: Pre-Mature Ramblings: Beginnings of a Small (Bright) Spark [4]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Constellation, Don't Examine This Too Closely, Family, Family Reunions, Family Secrets, Gen, POV First Person, Permanent Injury, Stars, from falling off a roof, i guess i was into, i used legit, idiot, names too, thats what you get, this time, when i made names
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-24
Updated: 2016-03-24
Packaged: 2018-05-28 19:04:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,142
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6341488
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rei_Kingdom/pseuds/ThePlaceThatILeft
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The night sky holds many secrets.<br/>And it might just be the key to unlocking another.</p><p>/Originally written at age 13 for an English assignment.<br/>Another 'old stuff I discovered in my usb so let's post it here why not'.<br/>See series notes for why this exists./</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Not the Epilogue

**Author's Note:**

> Well, my People of the Internet...  
> It seems there are more things that have been unearthed than there should have in this series.
> 
> But.  
> Enjoy anyway.  
> It isn't as bad.  
> I getting better. I think.

My mind was clear. I could have accepted my fate and let everything go. I could have pleaded, begged and done just about anything to make them stop. The ‘old’ me would have had all her thoughts running wild and would have lost every last bit of sense in her. But nothing had been normal since I met that _bright shining star_. The only thing I could think of was to get out of that room. Away before it started. _Away from everything._  
 

So I did.  I was falling. Falling fast. But then I wasn’t falling anymore. I was hanging. Hanging on with every last piece of strength within me. But I couldn’t hang forever.

And I didn’t. I fell. I hit the ground hard. Did it hurt? It must have. But I can’t remember, because by then I had blacked out and thinking back to the time when we first met. The day I first saw _Solaris_.

 

* * *

 

 

 

                “Astra! Get down from there and go to sleep! It’s already 11:30! You have school tomorrow, you know!”

                “Yes Mum! I’ll be down in a minute!” I called from my rooftop Observation deck. As I heard her footsteps leave I groaned. Can’t she see I’m trying to relax? Besides, the sky hasn’t been this clear since the start of Autumn. She knows how important this is to me.

 

I’ve always loved stargazing. I studied comets, constellations and just about everything that was found in the night sky. I’m basically nocturnal. Since the school holidays I’ve been up all night charting stars and sometimes just laying down and watching them glimmer. I use the telescope my Dad gave me to observe the stars more closely. He also renovated a spot on the roof to build an Observation Deck for me. He was the only one who really knew how much I loved stars.

I guess that’s why my name is Astra. But after my Dad left us, my Mum’s been pretty down. She used to share my Dad’s love for the sky, but now, she can’t even bear to stand on the Observation Deck. I’ve always spent a lot of time up here on the Deck, but these days I seem to be spending  every free moment of time I had up here. Mum gets angry sometimes, since it reminds her of Dad, and she wants me to stop and find a new hobby. But I felt that I need to see be up there looking at the sky.

It was my only way of escaping reality.

 

After finishing the charting of Columbæ, meaning dove, I climbed down the ladder and trudged to my room with my new star charts. I switched on the lights to reveal my intricately painted room of a clear night sky. I sighed as I began to pin the new charts to the wall above my desk. The whole wall was filled with charts of constellations and notes about each one. I prided myself on my vast knowledge of stars. I looked up to see that there wasn’t any more room to pin another chart on that wall. I had pinned Columbæ on top of Eridani.

I sighed again and simply rolled up the chart and placed it on my desk. I dropped onto my bed and stared at the ceiling. It was elaborate night sky scene. Although I had charts of the constellations, seeing the midnight navy sky behind them was even better. All the tiny white dots placed carefully in the exact place they belonged. As I lay down and closed my eyes, I began to drift into my own little world. I thought about the days to come, and the days when Dad was still around.

Now it was just me, Mum and the silence of a quiet, simple life. I was just about to slip off into a peaceful slumber when my phone suddenly alarmed, sending a jolt of surprise up my back.

I had forgotten _it_ was tonight.

 

* * *

 

 

12:00am. Midnight. Officially Monday. Tonight was the Super- Moon. And midnight would mean it would be at its peak in the sky. And with this weather, I would be able to see it clearly. I wasn’t much of a photographer, but when it came to the stars, I was in it. Technically, the moon isn’t a star, but hey, who doesn’t love night scenery?

 

The moon was huge. Not just huge but gigantic. Colossal.

I felt a chilly breeze pass by and remembered I wasn’t wearing a coat. I held my night- vision camera in my shivering hands and was about to push the shutter button when I saw something.

_Someone._

Floating. I could just make out their silhouette against the moon. I looked through the viewfinder and zoomed in. The strange thing was, the closer I zoomed in, the less I was able to see the figure. I decided I was just seeing things and wiped the camera lens. As I lifted it to my eye again, a person’s eyes were staring right into mine. It was a man. His gaze was solid. He wore no expression. All he had was a blank face and fierce, cold eyes, which felt like they were staring right into my soul. I stared at him, and he stared at me.

His eyes were a shade bright orange and burned into mine like a wildfire.

I couldn’t stop looking.

 

After a few moments that felt like hours, he broke his gaze and turned to look back at the moon. I lowered my camera to see he was floating, a few inches from the Deck. He was wearing long, almost luminous robes the colour of the Sun. I opened my mouth to talk, but found no words. I quietly placed my camera down and, with a trembling hand, reached out to touch him. To know if he was real. My fingertips trembled as they neared his great, flowing robe. Just as my fingertip felt the velvet silk he turned to face me. My eyes getting lost in his once again. I felt my legs grow weak and my mind go numb. I feel to my knees on the ground.

                “Please,” I said with all my courage. “Please don’t hurt me. I won’t tell anyone. I swear!”

I heard a _whoosh_ from in front of me.  Then after a few moments, I lifted my eyes to see empty space. I hesitated for a while, not knowing how to react. I gingerly picked up my camera once again to take the photos I had come for. After taking the photos I went back to my room and put the camera on my desk.

 

I lay in bed for what must have been hours, replaying the moment I came face - to - face with such a person. Over and over I relived those few moments. I closed my eyes and visualised his hard, expressionless face. Staring at me intently before leaving me on my own.  But all I really knew was that I would never see him again.

 

But how could I ever have been so wrong.

 

* * *

 

 

 

Weeks passed. My whole life became a blur. Everyday I’d wake up, eat, go to school, get home, do homework, eat, bathe, and sleep. I always went up to the Deck at midnight, hoping to see the mysterious man once again. I could never forget his cold expression and burning eyes. The way they just looked deep into my soul.

 

At first, I had been so frightened of telling anyone, frightened of what might happen if I did. I didn’t question his presence or existence. I just accepted that. But now I was getting frustrated. He never came again. I wanted to see him. I _NEEDED_ to see him. I wanted to know more about him. Questions whirled around my mind and as I began to sort them mentally, more would be asked in my mind.

_I needed to know._

 

The semester was coming to a close and the rest of my life became routine and the only time I spent _actually thinking_ was on the Observation Deck. It was almost the week of Year 8 exams and my grades were failing and my health wasn’t any better. I had been absent for so many days because of poor nutrition and lack of sleep, causing fainting, dizzy spells and constant vomiting. And my health wasn’t helping my Mum any better.

She was worrying. Everyone we knew was worrying.

 

Somehow, I gave up on the fact I was going to meet him again. Maybe, just maybe, _he wasn’t real at all._

* * *

 

 

 

I finally gave up all hope of seeing him again on the last day of the school year, which I didn’t attend. It was officially the Christmas holidays but there was no festive cheer in our home. My Mum was about to drown in debt and it was my fault. With her staying home to care for me, she wasn’t able to do her job. I hated to cause pain to others, especially towards my Mum. I knew I could sort of handle Dad’s disappearance but Mom was still struggling. I didn’t want her to feel any more pain. So I sucked up my pride in the name of common decency and helped her out. Throughout the holidays I did what a good girl would do. I helped around the house and even took a few part time jobs to help with our finance problems.

 

But even though I kept my eyes focused on now, my thoughts were still plagued by the memories of the floating man and his unforgettable presence. I went back to charting stars, taking photos and stargazing.

 

Just as I had done every other night, I climbed up to the deck with blank sheets of star charting paper and set them down on the table with all my equipment to begin to draw. But as I was climbing, I felt a strange, cold sensation. I was wearing my coat, yet it felt that the cold seeped right through to touch me. I looked up and shivered, but not because of the cold. And I felt my heart would stop if it skipped another beat.

 

It was him. And he had returned. _With a message._

* * *

 

                   “So we finally meet formally, dear Astra.”

I couldn’t answer. My lips were numb and I was at a loss for words.

                   “My, you’ve grown. I haven’t been able to visit you due to my duties as Lord Star of this galaxy.”

I kept silent. Trying to process all my thoughts clearly, thinking of reasonable excuses as to what all this meant.

                   “Terribly sorry for my tense mood from the previous night. I was meaning to make a proper visit, but, as you know, the stress of my duties was piling up and I wasn’t able to commence with my plans.”

His words swirled around my head as truth and illusion combined and my imagination was in overdrive. My ears were ringing with his echoing words. His duties? _Lord Star?_ My thoughts were spinning, my head was pounding, my heart was racing and I felt as if I was about to explode. Then he rested his hand on my shoulder. It was as warm as the sunlight on a cloudless Summer morning. I slowly raised my head to be engulfed by the burning wildfire of his eyes. I stared as everything I needed to know was given to me. Answers I had been searching for.

 

But I didn’t understand. My mind went blank. And one picture flashed, which made my heart stop.

                   “I’m sorry I overwhelmed you. I thought, you already knew.”


	2. Epilogue

And this brings my story to the start, where I fell.

I awoke to find myself in a hospital, my Mom tearing up by my side.

She explained everything that had happened, how I had fallen off the Observation deck and been out cold for a whole week. My mind buzzed with questions.

How? What? Where’s Solaris? Was I dreaming?

 

After three more days at the hospital I was finally allowed to go home.

Mum said that my release from hospital couldn’t have been at a better time, and that there was someone she wanted me to see. She said it was a surprise.

 

So as a Mum pushed my wheelchair towards the front door and opened it, I was welcomed and greeted by who my Mum said was my father. He was holding a picture of me as a child, cradled in his arms.

 

I knew I had seen that picture before, but not in my Mum’s photo albums.

 

As soon as I realised where I had seen it,

I looked at him, and he stared back, with his orange eyes, burning like a wildfire.

It almost felt like they looked right into my soul.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this part was actually written centered, and completely italicized.  
> gross.  
> so i changed it, just this once.

**Author's Note:**

> it's still pretty bad, but eh.
> 
> originally written in Calibri (Body) font.


End file.
